Mother-of-two, 38, who died in her sleep after bingeing on white wine with a friend who had joked she looked 'dead to the world' when she checked on her in the morning – not realising she had already stopped breathing

Trainee hairdresser Emma Jones, 38, from Widnes in Cheshire, had shared two bottles of white wine following a row with her ex-husband before falling asleep

Her friend went to wake her up next morning but thought she was sound asleep

After 9am she realised Miss Jones was unresponsive and called an ambulance

Coroner in Cheshire recorded Mis Jones' death as drug-related but accidental

Trainee hairdresser Emma Jones, 38, from Widnes in Cheshire, had shared two bottles of white wine following a row with her ex-husband

A mother-of-two died in her sleep after binge drinking, with a friend joking that she looked 'dead to the world' when they checked on her.

Trainee hairdresser Emma Jones, 38, from Widnes in Cheshire, had shared two bottles of white wine following a row with her ex-husband before falling asleep in Victoria Fonterigo's spare bedroom.

The next morning at 7am, Miss Fonterigo went to wake Miss Jones up but left her in bed - assuming she was sound asleep.

The horrifying truth emerged when she opened the curtains at 9am to find her friend unresponsive.

Tests showed Miss Jones, who was studying a college course in hairdressing would have been three times the drink drive limit.

An inquest heard the tragedy occurred in May after divorcee Miss Jones went to visit her friend to 'put the world to rights' after a row with her ex-husband Kevin over custody of their two children.

Miss Fonterigo told the Warrington hearing: 'We have been friends for years and we saw each other a lot.

'Emma came to mine at around 9.30am on the Monday and she was a bit bothered because something had gone on, on the Sunday.

'I made breakfast but she didn't eat anything and said she felt flu-like and so we spent the afternoon watching television. At about 2.45pm our other friend Anna asked if Emma wanted some fresh air to clear her head.

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'Anna went to pick the children up from school and Emma walked back via the co-op and picked up a bottle of wine to put in my fridge for later. During the afternoon she was getting texts from her ex-husband Kevin saying she wasn't allowed to pick up the children from school anymore.

'About 8pm she opened a bottle of wine and I ordered us a Chinese takeaway but Emma didn't eat much. We were watching a film and she picked up a little bit and I got a text from my friend Chris and he came round and we went to the shop to buy another bottle of wine because Emma had ran out.

'I came back about 9.45pm and she seemed quite jovial - she was arranging a date with a new guy she had met.

The next morning at 7am, her friend Victoria Fonterigo (left) went to wake Miss Jones (right) up but left her in bed - assuming she was sound asleep. At 9am she realised she was unresponsive

Tests showed Miss Jones, who was studying a college course in hairdressing would have been three times the drink drive limit

'She opened the second bottle of wine and we were just chatting, putting the world to rights. I had made her an appointment with a solicitor on the Thursday and a doctors appointment for the following day so she could prove to her ex that she wasn't depressed.

'Her ex-boyfriend Danny then rang me wanting to speak to Emma but she didn't speak to him. She finished the second bottle of wine and took a Cyclizine tablet and then said that she was going to bed.

'She went to bed and I stayed up for another hour chatting to Chris and then he left and I went to bed.

'I got up about 7am and I was on the phone to Anna and she asked me how Emma so I went to check on her.

Coroner for Cheshire, Dr Janet Napier said: 'There is no evidence of Emma taking any deliberate steps to take her own life'

'I opened the door and said to Anna: "She looks dead to the world" and so I left her sleeping because she hadn't been sleeping well with everything going on.

'It got to past 9am and I thought it wasn't like her so I went to wake her and when I opened the curtains I realised something was wrong and called for an ambulance.'

Miss Jones' mother, Margerie Gates, said: 'I saw her on the Friday before she died and she seemed okay.

'She looked a bit worried and said she didn't feel well and felt constantly tired.

'She didn't speak to me on the Monday because she was feeling down because of some custody issues with her ex and her children.

Tests showed Emma had 236 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 milillitres of blood in her system - the legal limit is 80mg.

It also emerged she was suffering from severe alcohol fatty liver disease and there were traces of prescription tablets in her blood stream including morphine, paracetamol, codeine and Cyclizine.

Police concluded there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding her death. A post mortem concluded she died from fatty liver disease and opiate toxicity exacerbated by alcohol use.

Recording a conclusion of drug related death, Coroner for Cheshire, Dr Janet Napier said: 'There is no evidence of Emma taking any deliberate steps to take her own life.

'She was very stressed but she was talking about this and making plans for the future, including going on a date.

'I don't find any evidence of her wishing to end her own life. She did drink a lot and this had taken a toll on her liver and would have made it difficult for her to break down the tablets she was taking, but I conclude that this was a tragic accident.'